The Truth About Overstays In Thailand

Immigration has gradually been getting stricter about overstays so if you've overstayed you should take care of it immediately. The longer you wait the worse it gets, and not just from the financial aspect. You want your passport to look as squeaky clean as possible and overstays are now being looked upon in a different light.
The crackdowns, restrictions and policy changes that we see all the time usually mystify us when it comes to figuring out the why behind whatever change has been made. One thing that you have to realize, to make a least a little sense out of what's going on, is that many of the changes are done in reaction to what certain countries' nationals are doing and that it has little to do with westerners. Citizens from Middle Eastern and some other Asian countries can be doing things that the Thai government is trying to stop and the only way for them to accomplish their goals is to make changes that affect everyone.
Overstays are part of this. People from some of these countries who abuse the overstay policy can create a situation where the government has to crack down. That may be what's happening now and we've certainly heard things to this effect over the last several months but the bottom line is, don't overstay and if you do then clear up your status as fast as possible.